No doubt it's an Espresso

No doubt what they sell at this place!  No chance to get a java here since we just finished having breakfast at the Maltby Cafe next door.  The cinnamon rolls there are enourmous and delicious.  Scones equally as good and all breakfast dishes are out of this world.   A definite place to visit.  Go and enjoy.

.... Tis the Season!  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all.  Perfect time for those warm holiday drinks.  Enjoy.  This Espresso stand is in Marysville, Washington.  Stop by and enjoy their coffee and decorations.  The Santa behind this Espresso stand is worth a look for the kids!

Goodness!  Time has flown by and I've been remiss in keeping up on my coffee blog!  Other projects got in my way but I never stopped drinking coffee.  I did, however, earn a Gold Card at Starbucks.  Although I am wondering what is the purpose of that Gold Card.  They have taken away free soy and free pumps and it seems that to earn a free drink I have to spend quite a bit of money.  I will be reevaluating the purpose of this card.

Starbucks has also been entering new markets - coffee machines, tea stores, instant coffee, summer drinks called Refreshers, Evolution drinks.  I'm so confused that I am beginning to be disinterested in their coffee.

I have recently discovered Essential Baking Company.  Their coffee is amazing!  Absolutely smooth.  They use Vitrola Roasters. 

Enjoy your cup of Joe.  Check back soon for more postings.

#24 This Camano Island coffee shack was open - whew!

Cute green cup!

This "Locals" Camano Island coffee shack was open late in the afternoon - however, don't make the mistake of ordering a Frappucino here.  It was way tooo heavy and not very tasty.  You're better off driving 1 block to the local Starbucks and getting your Frappucino there.  According to the Seattle Times, Starbucks has reformulated their Frapps recently - no wonder I like it so much!

#23 Closed one!

So sorry!  This one didn't get our business because it was closed!  Why is it some of these coffee shacks close by 3PM?  Guess most of you out there don't need a jolt that late in the day....  Maybe we'll catch you next time we're in Camano Island.

# 22 Do you know where Mercury is?

Mercury's Coffee makes a good cappucino!  Where do you think this one is located????

#21 Touchdown Espress0

I'm not stopping in here until Football Season!  But it's cute and convenient as it's located right in a gas station..

#20 Lady Latte near Flower World

Cute red "Lady Latte" coffee shack located minutes from Flower World in Snohomish Washington. Good coffee and even got 2 coffee chocolate beans with my coffee. Yum!  Great day trip with my old neighbor who was already drinking a cup of warm tea.  Next time, we will have to stop at the Malby Cafe - it's got a great reputation for homemade food!

#19 Sugar Shack Espresso

Wow! Renton is full of these coffee shacks! This is the one I stopped at after the swim meet - just a short 5 hours in a high school pool while the sun was shining outside! This name says it all.. Stop by the shack when you're in the area and check out the plantings they use as decorations.

#18 Rev It Up

Rev It Up is in Renton, Washington. What a great name! On the way to a swim meet, I really needed some Java (after all there was no sleeping in this Saturday as swim meet warm ups started before 8AM). Counter gal was not overly friendly even the kids commented on her frown! Decent coffee. You gotta love the Christmas lights (click on the picture to get a close up) AND of course, the original tip jar!

#17 Amore Coffee

Amore Coffee is located in the Skate King Plaza. It was for sale about 6 months ago and I considered buying it but didn't really do anything about it. Whoever bought it added a cute deck, a new name with a nice red sign that can be seen down the block. Super nice workers and decent coffee.

Like most coffee shacks, they offer a coffee card - buy 9 drinks get the 10th for free. They even stamp it with a red heart. How cute is that!

I had an 8oz drip ~$1.50ish. Good especially since the day was rainy and grey.

#16 Java Jolt

Java Jolt - what a great name! Cute Espresso place in Newcastle sitting right next to a Gas Station. How convenient. I had a 16 oz. vanilla non-fat latte for $3.25. A bit pricey but worth every penny.

They use Dillano coffee and claim it's the smoothest - it's no lie!

#15 Near Juanita Beach

School is having their annual auction and as I was on my way to get a check from one of our sponsors when I saw this ugly pink sign: "What does Oberka-none mean?" I have no idea but it certainly caught my eye. I ended up with an 8 0z latte for $2.25. It was fine and tasted good. Of course, the 50 degree DRY (yes - that's almost 4 days of amazing weather in Seattle!) day got better with a warm cup of joe in hand. Stop by this place if you're close to Juanita Beach - maybe you'll get the answer right and save 25 cents!

#14 It's For Sale

Mukliteo, Washington. This coffee shack is for sale. $125,000. How many cups of coffee would you have to sell to make $100K per year? We calculated around 100 cups a day! I wonder what owners are making on these coffee drive - thrus? Should I buy one?

Coffee was nice and hot on a fairly cold day (for Washington). At least there was sun out today!

#13 Jazzed

Great color here so not to be missed on those dreary days when you really want a cup of joe or a frothy latte. This one is located right by one of the gas stations I frequent. Isn't it a great name? Jazzed? Fill 'er up - gasoline for the car, caffeine for the driver all in one stop - brilliant!

My spouse tells me that he won't read my blog as it is predictable and boring. Shall I start some sort of treasure hunt on this blog?

#12 Dick's (not a coffee drive thru)

I just realized that there are lots of "drive thrus" in Seattle, hamburger ones that is. So this may turn into a hamburger / coffee drive thru - shack, whatever blog. Why not? Dick's was recommended by my sister who has been in Seattle for almost 3 years. Super easy to find, close to the U of W and smelled great! How cute is this place?

They have a really simple menu and people seemed friendly enough BUT unfortunately, they do no customization of burgers! Simply put, if you want a plain burger (nothing on it) you can't have it at Dick's. I was with my pregnant sister - in - law who just cannot stomach anything on a burger (not even a small bit of ketchup and mustard). I was also with my brother - in - law who has an allergic reaction (puke) to mayo or anything that might resemble mayo. We were so sad to leave Dick's but had to because they couldn't help us out! Perhaps the car companies could learn something from them? Less variation in their product pushes you to buy what's available? Well - we didn't. We drove right down to Kidd Valley on 50th Street and got just what we wanted. You're cute enough to come back - maybe next time Dicks!

#11 By the Way....

Yup - this is really called BY THE WAY. By the way, can I please have a cup of joe? This is located right by the highway in a non-descript pseudo parking lot. Never a long line here (1 or 2 cars at most) and although they don't offer drip coffee they make a good Americano. My brother - in -law who just loves vanilla steamers ordered one here. He claims it's the best he's ever had. He's from Indiana so just keep that in mind :).

Small Americano and Small Vanilla Steamer $3.50ish

#10 Big Foot Java

The name says it all. I had to stop at this place as it looked to great to pass up. Besides I drove by it 3 times before I figured out which exit from Hwy 5 I had to take to get to it - it's exit #151 as you head towards

Tacoma. I've seen these before in the Federal Way / Renton area too. Good service and lots of choices for Italian Soda. One of my passengers ordered a Vanilla Italian Cream Soda and loved it. I splurgged since it took some work to get to this coffee drive thru and had a cappucino instead of my usual drip. My spouse and I agreed it was a very good cup of cappucino.

Small Cappucino $2.95

Small Italian Cream Soda $2.25

#9 Fremont Coffee House

Last day of Music Camp. The kids and I really enjoyed the week and also the chance to explore Fremont. What a great place! Music Camp was a terrific experience. I couldn't believe how hard all the kids and faculty worked this week, the final performances today was just AMAZING. The day got started right at the Fremont Coffee house. My sister told me about this place and I came earlier in the week, but parking is a bit tricky (no lot just street parking). I got lucky today and was able to find a spot right in front (about 8:10AM). This is a cute house with no cell phones allowed - yipee! A nice quiet place to read the paper and enjoy a good cup of coffee. I also got a croissant, which I shared with my kiddos (aren't I nice?). Croissant was just OK. Coffee was good. Service OK - not overly friendly but adequate. My guess is that this place is a local hang out.

Bye Bye Fremont - see you next year at Music camp as we will be back for sure!

Medium 12 oz. drip coffee $1.80

#8 Organic Espresso - Fremont by the Bridge

You know I'm fairly new to Seattle. I've only been here since the monsoon month of November last year. Driving around I quickly realized that there are so many coffee shacks and I find them all too cute. However, this week my kids are at music camp and we are in Fremont everyday. Wow - lots of coffee places there. Organic Espresso is where I visited today. No line, quick service and they even gave me a chocolate covered coffee bean which was placed on top of my lid. Just eat it quickly as it melted (coffee was hot!). If you're not into that "organic" stuff - I'm not quite there yet - these guys had a really tasty cup of joe. Maybe there is something to all that organic stuff?

Medium Drip with milk, $2.00

#7 Yellow Coffee Shack Drive - Thru

Climbed Little Si today. Our hiking book says this is a moderate climb - I completely disagree. It was hard! 2.2 miles to the summit (4.4 miles back). Great hike and not too sunny either. This coffee drive -thru, called New Dawn Espresso, is very yellow and right by the hike. Too bad I was so thirsty for water instead of coffee or I would have stopped by to see if their drip is better than Dunkin Donuts (which was voted best coffee in the U.S. recently).

#6 Cnpecco Kanny4nho - Moscow

The last coffee shop during the Russia trip was in Moscow. Great coffee, cute mugs (I bought 2 of them) and located at the Arbat (shopping area). They had cute black with red piping t-shirts, but none for sale. They really should sell them as I would have gotten one for sure. Guess what I ordered? Cappucino of course! # 2 for the day. Paid in rubles - can't recall how much. It's Moscow so I probably paid $10 US for it! That place is expensivo...

#5 Ctapbak in Moscow

This is Starbucks in Moscow. Unfortunately our swift tour guide didn't allow us to stop for a good 'ole drip here. It's certainly a place to check out next time we're there. This one is close to Red Square and the Kremlin. Not many of them around - saw none in St. Petes.

#4 St. Petersburg, Russia Coffee Sign

Coffee sign and cappucino in St. Petersburg, Russia. Paid in rubles - can't seem to recall how many rubles. Great cappucino you gotta have at least 3 / day while vacationing, right?

#3 Could not find a new coffee shack in Plymouth, MA - what about a free donut?

https://www.telldunkin.com/

Another great coffee day today (summer really needs to come!).. I could not find a new coffee shop so I went to a drive-thru Dunkin' Donuts. For all those interested, go to the link above with your receipt from Dunkin' Donuts, fill out the survey, and get a free donut. Why not? Use the donut to bribe your kids or loved ones.

#2 America Runs on Dunkin Donuts

It's a perfect coffee day - cool and rainy. This Dunkin Donut shop is on 3A in Plymouth, MA just a few blocks north of MaryLou's. No trip to the east coast would be complete without a stop at Dunkin Donuts. It's legendary. Love it so much my sister-in-law brought me their grounds when she visited me in Seattle last month. Nothing cute or fancy about this shop - it's located in a strip mall by a grocery store. Good for plain 'ole coffee and donuts.

$1.52 Small Drip with cream

MaryLou's Coffee, Plymouth MA

Although the idea for this blog originated as I was driving the kids to Goldbar, Washington where we spotted a gal serving coffee in a polka dotted bikini at a drive-thru (kids were laughing!), apparently coffee huts are everywhere (is this news to anyone?). Perhaps I didn't notice them until I moved out west (For those of you who know me, sometimes I'm just plain slow). As my husband's old boss said "I always feel sleepy in Seattle. It's a place where nothin' ever dries out!" Everytime I see a coffee hut, I think about this statement and chuckle.

No one can miss the white house with black shutters and hot pink awnings - it's Mary Lou's Coffee Drive-thru off of 3A in Plymouth MA.

Under $2. A Small Iced Coffee in a plastic cup, with a pink straw (of course)

Why am I writing this blog?

It seems everyone has a blog about something.. family stories, baby stories, food blogs, more food blogs, travels etc. What else could we blog about that would be interesting to those out there that have nothing to do but surf the net and look for interesting things to read (I'm not sure if this actually counts as reading - it's like my kids reading a photo album during the designated "20 minute reading time"? Besides I have nothing else to do but find another computer project - we all know that work email, personal email, texting, Facebook, and Twitter is not enough (don't put housework on this list). Besides, I've always wanted to write a book - but this seems much easier and it's published right away! How's that for all of us who think patience is a thing of the past?

I've been in the Pacific Northwest for almost a year now and am amazed at all the coffee houses, huts, shacks and drive thru's that are readily available to the locals. How many have I been to already and how many more can I visit?

Let me share these places with you - check back here often for this adventure. I'm setting a goal of going to 30 different coffee "places" by this time next year! Not a lofty goal, but a goal nonetheless.

Enjoy!

P.S. I'm really writing this blog because I am babysitting my sisters kids and her husband started a blog before they left, so I thought "Why not?" Kids are old enough to take care of themselves (but I still need to make sure there are no fires) and it's great entertainment, right?